Charles E. Kupchella was born in the Laurel Highlands of Pennsylvania - the oldest of six brothers in a coal-mining family. Dr. K has a bachelor’s degree from Indiana University of Pennsylvania, and a PhD in physiology from St. Bonaventure University. Dr. Kupchella worked as a musician throughout college—his group making a record and once playing back-up to a touring American Bandstand dance group. In college, he held a draftsman gig at a construction firm, and even worked in the mines during the summer before his senior year. During his professional career, Kupchella served as president of the Kentucky Academy of Sciences, president of the American Association of Cancer Education, and for nine years as president of the University of North Dakota. He is the author of several works of nonfiction on diverse subjects - the senses, cancer, and the environment. This is Kupchella's first work of fiction—a story addressing some compelling human questions.